We haunt every medium we make.

September 28, 2007

Gaping holes tunnel into the very face of Mars

Some mysterious holes have been spotted this year on the Martian surface, for our spacegoing Gothic pleasure. They look ominous, elegant in the depth of shadows. Here's one:

I love the language Astronomy Pic of the Day uses to describe these:

this mysterious dark pit, about 150 meters across, lies on the north slope of ancient martian volcano Arsia Mons...While the visible light images showed only darkness within, infrared thermal signatures indicated that the openings penetrated deep under the martian surface and perhaps were skylights to underground caverns...Black spots have been discovered on Mars that are so dark that nothing inside can be seen. Quite possibly, the spots are entrances to deep underground caves capable of protecting Martian life, were it to exist...The above hole is about the size of a football field and is so deep that it is completely unilluminated by the Sun...